We all have those rifles with the 30+ inch long barrels, and if all you have to clean these barrels is one of those Walmart cheapo one piece steel rods, then your probably forced to clean from the muzzle, and even then the rod sometimes isn't long enough to reach the full length of the barrel, all the way into the action. Not only that, but steel rods bend too easily, and the coating around them scraped off too easily. But you don't want to spend $40 on a super fancy rod. You can make your own for $2.

For cleaning rifle barrels .30 and up, you will need a 48" long 1/4" diameter fiberglass driveway marker from Lowes in the hardware section. A threaded brass jag, the kind that lets you screw on different attachments onto it. And a small block of wood to form the handle. You can carve your own handle if you can't find one.

First cut the reflector off the top of the driveway marker, then flatten both ends with a file.
Put the fiberglass rod into a padded vice, and carefully drill a shallow hole into one end. I drilled a hole about a 1/4" down the rod, which was long enough for me to attach the threaded piece of the universal brass jag. Then I cleaned the hole with alcohol, as well as the jag. Mix up a little JB weld, put in in the hole, and stick your jag in place. The hardest part is keeping the jag straight with the rod while the weld dries. I found you will want to just wait until the JB weld has thickened up a good bit before adjusting the jag.

Once it's dry, use a file to clean up the excess JB weld. Now you can attach your wooden handle. I just so happened to have an old wooden table leg laying around, I cut it to length, and drilled a 1/4" hole down into the handle 1" down. Degrease it, put some JB weld in the hole, and stuck the rod down in there. For added strength you can drill a hole through the handle (when it's dry) and insert a brass screw through the handle, then cut it off and both ends.

This rod is long enough to clean my 31 inch barreled 71/84 Mauser, and from the chamber end, it also works great on my Turkish Mauser and 91/30. The brass jag allows you to screw on whatever attachment you wish, brushes, mops, pointed jags, slotted tips. The fiberglass is extremely strong, it takes alot of bending before it will snap. And it will induce zero wear on the bore, unlike a steel rod.

Mike 56

I have made several of these cleaning rods they work good. Here is a link were you can buy brass ram rod tips.https://www.trackofthewolf.com/index.aspx
If i remembered right the 7/16 tip fits that fiberglass rod with out turning it down. They come in 10-32 and 8-32 threads.

Gunfreak25

Midsouthshooters also has the brass attachments, allows you to attach virtually anything from .22 jags to .50 cal jags, .22 brushed to .50 cal brushes, and you can attach onto that a shotgun adapter. Personally I really didn't see the use in making more than 1 rod. The rod I have works for nearly everything, and it only takes a few seconds to swab attachments. For my smaller bored commercial weapons I still use my walmart rod, but I like my homemade rod for all the big boys, .43 Mauser, 30-06, 7.92, 7.62.

candyman

Here are the rods that inspired Tom to make his cleaning rod. When I went to Yuma, AZ last year to visit with Tom and his family, we put in a little range time.

When Tom saw my cleaning rod, he asked where I had got them. I told him that I had made them and how.
Tom, My hats off to you, great job on the cleaning rod. :thumb:

Frank46

I've made couple cleaning rods out of some old 1/4" phosphor bronze brazing rod. Basically face off one end nice and flat and slightly chamfer the sides. Then center drill 8x32 or whatever size I need for the brush, jag, patch holder. And the other end thread 1/4x20 and make up an aluminum handle from some 1" aluminum round stock about 4" long. Drill and tap one end 1/4x20 screw the handle on to the rod and go cleaning. The phosphor bronze has the advantage of being 36" long and slightly stronger than brass and I've found it to flex less than either brass or aluminum rods. It gets wiped down after every pass through the bbl. And I still use a brass rod guide regardless of what my rods are made out of. I have a section of 3/8" phospor bronze brazing rod that I plan on making up for my armi-sport zouave 58 caliber muzzle loader and for the handle will use a piece of 1" copper-nickle round stock. Will drill and tap for the different attachments for muzzle loading, and cleaning. When polished up should look pretty spiffy. And have a 3/8" rod brass muzzle guide for this rod. Frank